User blog:WBH-LM27/Death Battle Season 6: The Mega Review
Introduction Hello there! I was feeling bored, so I decided now would be a good time to do an analysis on Death Battle's Season 6, now that it's wrapped up. With Season 7 on the way, the show is definitely looking towards a brighter future, but before we do that, we need to look at the past, and figure out how this season fared... in my own opinion, of course. Firstly, I'd like to introduce a revolutionary, patent-pending method of reviewing Death Battles: The MATER 'formula. What does MATER stand for, you ask?? He doesn't, he- he's a car, he can't stan- '''MATER '''is an acronym, naturally, for the different points to be covered on the individual episodes. *'M'atchup: The base idea of the fight itself. The characters, their connections, how exciting and how balanced the fight sounds on paper. Less about the episode itself, and more about the premise. *'A'nalysis: The Wiz and Boomstick segments leading up to the fight itself. This focuses on how the information is presented, how well they show off the fighters' strengths and weaknesses, as well as how entertaining or memorable the segments are. In other words, ranking how good the chemistry between Wiz and Boomstick is for the segments. *'T'ussle: The core fight of the episode. The animation, portrayal of the characters, accompanying music, any story being told, and the most important part to me - the ''death. In other words, how good them battles be, and how creative/fun/cool/badass/whatever the climax turns out to be. *'E'''xamination: This part covers the post-fight analysis and results of the fight, how accurate a fight is and any individual points that feel important enough to be made. Similar to the analysis and matchup segments, but focus on how Death Battle concluded the fight, such as closeness and how agreeable it is. Almost all battles are gonna end up ranking high on this. *'R'eaction: BIAS! This'll be where I throw in my own take on the fight. How much I enjoyed it, my own personal grievances or praises. Of course, the other segments will have their own bias injected into them, but I'll try and keep the brunt of it into this one. Each segment has a 5-point system as most reviews do. For those of you who can't math, this means there's a 5 point minimum and 25 point maximum. For the sake of theme, let's use 'skulls' as the defacto points. Also, probably not gonna complete all of it at once, so this'll probably be done in segments of four, for convenience sake. And I might throw a Tier List onto the end, just to make things spicy. And, once again - this is all purely my opinion. It'll most likely differ from most people, and will also probably feature a few 'hot takes'... or just mild takes, if that's how things turn out. Cold takes. Negative Degree Takes-alright I'll stop now... Well, with all that out of the way, let's get this started! Season 6 - Episode 1: Aquaman VS Namor (DC Comics VS Marvel) '''Matchup: '''Aquaman/Namor is probably one of the more... obvious choices for a Death Battle. It's another Marvel VS DC Match, featuring both universe's Kings of Atlantis. Aquaman getting his movie in and around the time of release also made it fairly fitting, and this really was the best option for both combatants. As for fairness, you could argue there was a good sense of balance going into things. Both characters are relatively obscure, and not all too popular, or powerful compared to their fellow heroes. However, more people know Aquaman than Namor for a reason - he's more popular. And, the more popular you are, the more powerful you get in your series. Of course, the battle isn't a downright stomp... but Aquaman's definitely got the advantage, which leaves things less intense going in. '(3/5) Analysis: '''When the first thing you hear is the phrase "I don't get Mermaids", you know you're in for a fun time. Both hosts waste no time getting into the nitty-gritty of both combatants, and there are a good few stand-out moments within both rundowns (Boomstick comparing Aquaman to Spongebob was a natural highlight, and the old Namor jingle was also pretty sweet). Unfortunately, like most battles, the rundown doesn't have much to remember aside from the feats spoken about. Some episodes do better than others, but this one wasn't one of them. Honestly, just a pretty standard analysis. (2/5)' '''Tussle: '''Hoo boy, that fight though. Much like the Season Finale (which we'll get to when we get to), the fight starts off comedic, which also gives it a better chance at being memorable. Both Kaiji Tang and Todd Haberkorn do well voicing Aquaman and Namor respectively, nailing each character's tone and personality (Aquaman being goofy, before going serious, and Namor being overly serious the whole time). The writing is also pretty good, with a lot of standout moments ("Plenty of space around the pool, Spock", the Stone Golems, Kame House, the underwater Sharknado and the climax with the anglerfish) that made the fight good. If there was something bad to say about it, I'd say the animation - while still the usual DB Standard - does have a few iffy moments. There are a few times things are held on for a bit long (Namor's "IMPERIUS REX" is just a single sprite for a solid second or two, and there's a solid gap in dialogue when Namor and Aquaman are talking near the climax that's a little distracting), and some sprites don't exactly match well with the rest (the Golems specifically look a little odd). And Kings of the Sea, while a fine track... isn't the most memorable, and goes on just a bit longer as well. In the end, it's a solid fight, just with a few moments that hold it back just a smidge. Extra points go to Namor ''being eaten alive (4/5). Examination: '''The results went about as expected, with Aquaman pulling out the victory. The hosts do make things sound like they're a lot closer than they are though, but that isn't too big of an issue. In the end, it was just expectable - nothing too mindblowing about either combatant, ironic considering how Namor went out. (3/5)' '''Reaction: '''Personally, I found Aquaman VS Namor to be a fun time, but not the nail-biting, hair raising starter other season openers like Dante/Bayo, He-Man/Lion-O, or even Croft/Drake were. The episode, by itself, was a perfectly fine bout between the two Ocean Men, but I'm not looking for them to take me by the hand anytime soon. ' (3/5)' 'TOTAL: 15/25' Season 6 - Episode 2: Mega Man Battle Royale (Capcom) '''Matchup: '''Being the first Battle Royale since Season 2, the battle between the 5 most prominent Mega-Men was a surprise when it was first announced - but a welcome one, of course. Looking at the matchup just based off of one most people would've known prior, it'd be clear both Classic and Volnutt didn't stand much of a chance. Leaving only X, EXE, and Starforce. If I was to put my money on either of those three, before the battle came out, I probably would've gone with Starforce, though I'm not sure there would be an inherent reason behind it. Still, the match-up is definitely one of the best this season. '(4/5)' '''Analysis: '''Even though it was handling 5 characters in total, the analysis for MMBR was paced fairly well, with all characters getting their chance to shine, with unique and memorable moments in each segment that stuck out well (Mega Man Classic/Diet/Zero, the Mother Elf, Boomstick's Breakdown, 'Jacking Off' and the Happily Ever After, just to name a few). It also clearly displayed the strengths and weaknesses of each Mega Man and managed to tell the story of both timelines in a somewhat cohesive manner. And, even though DB already covered Classic in his fight against Astro Boy, it didn't feel too much like going over the same stuff. '(3/5)' '''Tussle: '''This battle was easily one of the best of the season, and maybe even the series if I'm being honest. From start to finish, everything was fast-paced, action-packed and produced on a spectacular level. Each character had a chance to shine in their own way, and it never directly felt like a stomp despite the clear power gaps between individual combatants (well, except for Volnutt, but he still got his shots in). The amount of detail was also damn amazing, from how both timelines were displayed by who fought who at the start, to the musicless black hole scene, to ''ZA WARUDO, it was all just great! And don't even get me started on the music, MegaMania is one of the best tracks released for DB so far. And while the fight itself had very little in the means of reason or story, it still felt impactful with the character interactions. Even though there wasn't any voice acting, you could tell how each character felt towards one another and their actions. And that ending, while not exactly the most creative, was still badass in how it was handled. (5/5) Examination: '''While the outcome itself wasn't exactly a shocker, it was still nerve-racking until the very end, and seeing .EXE come out on top was fulfilling and felt right. The explanation behind it was also well made, going down the list of Mega Men and giving each their due diligence while also explaining how they lost to the higher-ups. And EXE's Universal Feats were... well, surprising, complete with his 'biggest number' record. In the end, a solid recap. (4/5)' '''Reaction: '''The Mega Man Battle royale was an entertaining experience from beginning to end, and it's easily one of the best episodes from this season, packed with the quality of research as expected from DB, and a battle that's a top tier for the series as a whole. Not much else to say, but I think I covered everything.' (5/5)' 'TOTAL: 21/25' Season 6 - Episode 3: Black Widow VS Widowmaker (Marvel VS Overwatch) '''Matchup: '''Widow², when it was announced, was an... interesting idea, to say the least. I'm pretty sure everyone knew Natasha was going to take the win at the end of the day, but it was still an interesting matchup. It was nice to see an Overwatch character show up again after Tracer's win in Season 3, and going up against the last of the 6 Core (Film) Avengers at that. The concept is fine, just not too exciting when you think about it longer than a minute. '(3/5)' '''Analysis: '''The analysis was... alright Like, again, very few DB Pre-Fight Rundowns are ever directly bad, by any means, but most of them are generally... boring? Yeah, boring. And this one's no different, with only a handful of memorable moments. Though Blue-mstick was pretty funny, nothing really stuck out to me for long aside from the research itself. '(2/5)' '''Tussle: '''Compared to the other battles Death Battle has made, Widow² isn't exactly the most action-packed battle. Most of the combat happened around the last 3rd of the fight, and it's more comparable to a chase scene... but that was more or less what they were going for. The fight is more akin to one seen in the likes of a James Bond or Jason Bourne film, and I'd say it works perfectly well for it. Both characters were portrayed well, and the story told in the fight - while simple - was still pretty good. And Widow's Kiss, while not exactly the most memorable of tracks, suited the battle perfectly. Oh, and I almost forgot about the death!... yeah, it was alright. '(3/5)' '''Examination: '''As stated before, Black Widow's victory wasn't unexpected in the slightest, and the post-fight analysis more or less proved it, with it being about as standard as you go for results. Nothing was particularly of note (again, aside from Blue-mstick), and nothing really blew me away when it came to factoids.' (3/5)' '''Reaction: '''When the episode first came out, I really enjoyed it - I thought it was thrilling, exciting, other adjectives. But, now that time has passed, and the rush has dissipated, I'm not exactly as thrilled with the episode as I once was. It's still by no means a bad episode, certainly a good 3D Fight... but it wasn't anything stand-out either. Just a good episode.' (3/5)' 'TOTAL: 14/25' Season 6 - Episode 4: Captain Marvel VS Shazam (Marvel VS DC Comics) '''Matchup: '''Yet another Marvel VS DC fight, featuring the two heroes to go by 'Captain Marvel'! Yeah, this was another obvious one, with both Shazam ''and ''Captain Marvel having films released around that time, plus the whole rivalry thing. It's a lot like Aquaman VS Namor in a way, and while it's not the most interesting matchup (Shazam takes the cake without much difficulty), it's still nice to see it happen. '(3/5)' '''Analysis: '''It was alright, another standard pre-fight. Though the legal segment during Shazam's rundown (ft. MOTHA F*CKIN ENTERPRISES) was a nice sight to see. And just learning more about Shazam was always a good thing... but since we already knew a good bit about Carol thanks to her previous bout, half the rundown was kinda just going over stuff we already knew. '(2/5)' '''Tussle: '''Much like Aquaman VS Namor, the battle in Captain Marvel VS Shazam was fairly standard for 2D Fights. And yet, it had a sort of charm to it that made it stand out. It just felt more polished than the former and had a lot more energy put into it. I guess it was the subject matter that really made the difference, in a sense. Having the fight start over an accident was cute, and having Carol use Shazam's own magic lightning to turn him back into Billy Batson was a cute touch. And the death was both much more respectful than a literal head stomp, and pretty awesome, with Shazam destroying that asteroid to show his sheer power (speaking of which, the use of hand-drawn animation was utilized well, if not just briefly). Only real issue fight-wise was probably Marvel's Binary Form - much like in her fight with No. 18, it just felt kinda... weird? The fire on the head was what made it especially off. And while Marvelous is a good track, it's pretty forgettable. '(3/5)' '''Examination: '''Would ya look at that, Shazam won, who'da thunk it- I'm not really bothered to write this out to longer than a few sentences, honestly. As expected, Shazam was more powerful, and Captain Marvel couldn't keep up.' (3/5)' '''Reaction: '''When the fight was first announced, I was actually pretty excited - I liked Shazam, I thought Captain Marvel deserved another shot, and the thematic reasons behind it seemed good enough for me. However, by the time the fight came out... it just kinda started to lose the magic, in a way. Like, maybe I just realised it wasn't as good of a matchup I initially thought it was, or something, but it just felt... underwhelming. Again, not a bad episode, but it left a bit of a sour spot in my mouth afterwards. Watching it now, I can appreciate it more.. but it still feels a little off, in a way.' (2/5)' 'TOTAL: 13/25' Season 6 - Episode 5: Wario VS King DeDeDe (Mario VS Kirby) '''Matchup: '''Another surprise of the season - and not the last, by any means - Wario VS DeDeDe is a unique matchup that works well for both combatants. While Wario and DeDeDe both have fights that are arguably more popular (Mr Krabs and Shadow/Knuckles for the former, K. Rool and Bowser for the latter), but they managed to find the best of both worlds in this case, and in my opinion work much better than the other potential match-ups. As for how it'd go, before watching, it was really up in the air, as either combatant could have taken the victory. '(4/5)' '''Analysis: '''When covering two characters as zany as Wario and DeDeDe, it's only expected for the analysis to cover some of the more out-there moments in both' careers. Touching on both of their rich histories, this DB wastes no time noting down the arsenals and abilities of the fighters in question. The individual feats of the two gluttonous warriors really impressed me, as I didn't expect either to pull out stuff so... earth-shattering. From Wario's Waft being compared to a Nuke to DeDeDe somehow being able to survive a black hole (maybe his mass is too much for one, I dunno), both show incredible skills, and the banter between Wiz and Boomstick is as good as ever. '(3/5)' '''Tussle: '''Wario VS DeDeDe is the most destructive fight of the season. Not Ben 10 VS Green Lantern. Not Captain Marvel VS Shazam. Not Mob VS Tatsumaki. Not even Ghost Rider VS Lobo. Wario VS DeDeDe. With that out of the way, the fight itself was absolutely spectacular. Starting off with both characters' Super Forms in a boxing/wrestling match works wonderfully for their individually cooky antics, and the reactions of the Goomba and Waddle Dee were highlights in and of themselves. It also instantly throws away the stipulation that "whoever transforms/uses their ultimate move first loses", since both start out in their transformations. The battle also throws in a bit of backstory once the fighters' secret identities are revealed, which adds to both the tension ad comedy in a strong way. Every time you think the battle's going one way, it instantly switches, and neither character holds the advantage for very long. Plus, Wario blowing away the arena with his atomic waft was... well, something. Add onto that the overall stellar animation and a killer track that fits perfectly, and the battle for Wario VS DeDeDe is easily a highlight of the season. Wario blows up the planet. '(5/5)' '''Examination: '''Being the second Kirby character to show up in Death Battle, the last one being the pink puffball himself back in Season 2, King DeDeDe keeps up the now win streak by clobbering that there Wario. In hindsight, part of me felt it was somewhat natural - Kirby beat Majin Buu back in his fight, King DeDeDe would obviously be on a similar stat plane to him, even without the copy abilities or black hole of a stomach. Still, the results were well presented, and though it used a lot of scaling to other characters, it still made sense.' (4/5)' '''Reaction: '''Wario VS DeDeDe is the 2nd craziest fight of the season, and the fact I have to say that just shows how insane this season gets. I enjoyed the battle when it came out, and I enjoy it now. There's very little that deters me for this fight, and it was a thrill to watch from beginning to end!' (4/5)' 'TOTAL: 20/25' Season 6 - Episode 6: Ben 10 VS Green Lantern (Cartoon Network VS DC Comics) '''Matchup: '''While not the first matchup thought of for both combatants, it's by far one of the best. The more popular requests for Ben and Hal (Beast Boy and Nova, respectively) are fairly heavy stomps for the two of them, so having them go up against each other was the best bet. Not to mention their long list of similarities. Balance-wise, it's either a stomp for one or a stomp for the other, depending on who you ask... which means it'll probably be a good fight. '(5/5)' '''Analysis: '''When taking a look at two of the most powerful characters in comics/cartoons, the rundowns need to be just as impressive. And, while not the creme-de-la-creme, the pre-fight analysis for the episode was still pretty good. Running down both characters' histories, it touched on the most important details, as well as some of the more entertaining moments (Molestache, and the Lanterns' weakness to wood). It also included several good gags during the Wiz and Boomstick moments (Mutated Boomstick and the Yellow Elephant being stand-outs of such). Lastly, it touched on both the strengths and weaknesses of both characters, that made it clear about the potential when it came to either winning. '(4/5)' '''Tussle: '''Easily one of the best fights of the season, the battle between Ben and Hal was a spectacular showdown utilizing both the Green Lantern Power Ring and the Omnitrix to their best. While only used briefly in Captain Marvel VS Shazam, the hand-drawn animation used during moments of the episode helped when it came to impact, and really sold the power of the individual aliens and constructs used. I also liked how Hal got increasingly more irritated as the fight went on, which led him to eventually deciding on finishing Ben off before he could even fight back, showing a nice bit of progression - albeit in a negative light. And, while only 6 aliens total were used, each one was used phenomenally. Four Arms being the heavy brawler, Heatblast being awesome as always, Grey Matter as the comic relief, the kaiju size of Way Big, and the eventually overwhelming power of Alien X were all displayed magnificently. The voice actors were also on their A-Game this time around, with Bradley Gareth nailing it as Hal, and NAL pulling off being both Ben ''and ''six of his aliens. And don't even get me started on ''Emerald Heroes, 'cause hoo boy did Therewolf Media knock it out of the park this time around. (5/5) Examination: '''Having Hal be the winner, while definitely not the popular opinion (as shown by the general reception...), did make the most sense at the end of the day. Ben, even with his intense variety, really only had one alien who could come close to the power Hal has shown, and that alien - Alien X - still failed to match Hal's most impressive feats. And, just an aside, but the QnA session done later for the episode to help clarify things was just as quality, though doesn't help the episode in the rankings. (5/5)' '''Reaction: '''When I was younger, I used to watch Ben 10 religiously. From the Classic series all the way up to Ultimate Alien, I was an avid fan. And though I was a bit too old to fully get into Omniverse, I still find it incredibly refreshing and a great fourth part of the main continuity. Even the recent reboot, while not really ''for ''me, it still well made and does a lot of things right. I played almost every Ben 10 game on my DS, I used my siblings PS2 and Xbox 360s when I didn't own the consoles myself, just so I could play Ultimate Alien: Cosmic Destruction and the first Omniverse game on each respectively. I used to wear a classic Ben 10 costume like it was my regular clothes. I had non-permanent tattoos of a few aliens for a short while. I owned every Omnitrix from the Original Series to Omniverse, and still own my version of the Original Prototype Omnitrix to this day! '''Ben 10 was my childhood!' Death Battle killed my childhood. And, if I'm being honest? They could do it again, as far as I care. When the episode was announced, I actually decided to spoil myself on it, as well as Wario/DeDeDe's outcome when that happened. The second I did, I instantly regretted it, because I knew how hyped I would've been - and was - to see it when it was officially unveiled. It was the first time I really got into doing stuff on the Wiki because I was so excited about the episode. I used my FIRST membership trial just to see it early. And, yeah, while it did hurt to see my boy take the L... just seeing him in general, in a show I enjoy to watch, was a treat, and I thoroughly enjoyed my time. Not to mention Green Lantern was one of my favourite comic book characters long before the fight came out (thank you LEGO Batman 2). In the end, this episode holds a special place in my heart. It was easily my #1 episode of the season and still is from a personal level. ' (5/5)' 'TOTAL: 24/25' Season 6 - Episode 7: Weiss VS Mitsuru (RWBY VS Persona) Matchup: 'I'm just gonna stop talking about how each match-up is a 'surprise', and instead say that Weiss VS Mitsuru is a cool fight concept. Bringing in both another RWBY character and their first Persona character, it's bound to be entertaining... though it's also pretty obvious when it comes to the 'who wins' side, considering how Weiss doesn't have nearly as much stuff going for her. '(3/5) Analysis: 'With Death Battle being tied to Rooster Teeth, who make RWBY, Weiss' section was naturally going to be a lot more accurate and raw when compared to Mitsuru's. That being said, the Persona wielder's segment did have much more when it comes to impressive feats, and memorable gags (RIP those Interns, also Cannon Dick). Like most pre-fight analysis, it displayed both characters' stories and abilities well, though I do feel like Weiss' felt a little odd near the end - then again, probably due to RWBY not being concluded yet. '(3/5) Tussle: 'When I first watched the fight when it originally aired, I was unimpressed. However, now that it's been a while, I can safely say the battle was well made. Corey Pettit did a great job as Mitsuru, and having Kara Eberle reprise her role as Weiss was expected, but still pleasant nonetheless. Having as great choreography as ever, there were a good few stand out moments, and the camera angles and movement were also pretty impressive. Personally, I'm a big fan of when Weiss and Mitsuru went 1-on-1 while the Arma Gigas and Artemesia went at it in the background. Also, the "ice queen" moment, naturally. There were a few things I wasn't too big a fan of though. First, the track, Winter Sonata - while not bad, and fitting for the fight, I still wouldn't consider it a high-quality track compared to some others. And then there's the start and ending to the fight, both of which were... underwhelming. Having the fight started ''before ''the animation, while fine, still felt a little off, and didn't lead much for any story. And the death was... not that good. While it was composed well, and having Myrtenaster break was a nice touch, it just felt tame compared to the rest of the battles seen before or after the fight. '(3/5) Examination: '''I feel like having Weiss lose was a safe bet for RT and DB, considering how she's also probably the least popular of the core 4 in RWBY. Add onto that how it was right to give Mitsuru the win, and you got yourselves a fight that makes sense. I guess the only real doubt surrounding who'd win would be based on the whole Yang VS Tifa debacle of Season 2, but since DB has grown a lot more production-wise, I felt it made all the more sense for it.. (3/5)' '''Reaction: '''While an underwhelming episode when compared to the last one, Weiss VS Mitsuru was still a fun time overall. There are the natural gripes when it comes to the animation, and for a 3D fight it wasn't as action-filled as some would've liked - in a similar way to Widow² - it was still a good, well-made fight, and solidly sits around the mid-tier of the season.' (3/5)' 'TOTAL: 15/25' Season 6 - Episode 8: Johnny Cage VS Captain Falcon (Mortal Kombat VS F-Zero) '''Matchup: '''Captain Falcon is one of the more hype characters when it comes to fights, considering how... hype he is! And Johnny Cage felt like a good match for him as well, seeing how they're both celebrities in their individual worlds. This being another Community Death Battle to become an official fight, there was clearly some want for these two fighters to settle it in Sma-uh, Death Battle. '(4/5)' '''Analysis: '''While nothing spectacular, the analysis segment for Cage VS Falcon was still a good time, showcasing both fighters skills in the best fashions. Johnny Cage's filmography was a treat to read through, and Wiz' preparation for the eventual Boomstick nut punch was also pretty funny. But the real star of the show was Captain Falcon, getting to learn about the world of F-Zero along with his own strong feats. Oh, and Boomstick's goal to become the next Falcon was cute. '(3/5)' '''Tussle: '''Boomstick's reaction after the fight was pretty much the same as my own. This fight was filled to the brim with high action and surprisingly well-placed comedy, playing up Cage's showboat playboy attitude in wonderful contrast to Falcon's own serious demeanour. The story behind the fight's start is hilarious and grounded at the same time, and neither combatant directly shows the advantage until the very end. The usage of the Blue Falcon near the end was especially a treat, along with the creative use of the boost pads on the track. Kieran Flitton and Kestin Howard did great jobs as Cage and Falcon respectively, and the music of Brandon Yates' ''Falcon Uncaged ''set the tone spectacularly (also, that guitar solo by RichaadEB was fire). '(4/5)' '''Examination: '''Captain Falcon being the victor in the fight made sense, but it was clear that Johnny held his own in the fight thanks to the post-battle analysis. It showed off how Falcon toppled the celebrity Kombatant in a logical way, and while it wasn't too surprising to see the Captain take the crown, the feats displayed by the F-Zero racer were still news to me, and many others.' (3/5)' '''Reaction: '''Much like when I watched it way back when it first aired, Johnny Cage VS Captain Falcon was an adrenaline-filled match that, while not too impressive on the production level, made up for it with excellent choreography and an entertaining fight.' (4/5)' 'TOTAL: 18/25''' Category:Blog posts